Ocean Eyes
by Blaze022
Summary: [A Lukesse two-shot written on 1/23/19] Jesse, Lukas, Petra, and Ivor are trying to find their way back home through the portal network, and so far have been unsuccessful. Lukas and Jesse, however, may have some feelings mixed into their adventures.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: As said in the summary, this was originally written on 1/23/19 and hasn't been edited since. This is my first upload to this site, so if I screw anything major up, please let me know. Thanks for reading!**

Humans were such like flowers. They were beautiful, but oh so fragile. They could stand proudly, were majestic and regal. Yet at the end of the day, flowers would wither and return to the ground from where they came. Just like humans.

This was what was on Jesse's mind as she stared at a small, red flower bobbing in her vision. She was clothed in brown armor that was highlighted with red and gold, which glinted in the moonlight whenever she shifted. The young woman was laying on the ground and on her stomach, her tanned cheek resting against her forearm.

Pale moonlight was awash over field after field of flowers, each petaled plant clothed with a unique, glorious color of its own. Stars twinkled above, keeping watch over the colorful world beneath them.

It was night, but Jesse was not asleep, nor was she alone. Two of her companions slept nearby.

First was Petra. Her head was resting upon a moss covered rock, chin-length auburn hair covering her pale cheeks as she slept. Then there was Ivor, who was the source of the loud snoring that broke through the quiet night.

Perhaps she could not sleep because of restlessness brought from being inside of a strange world, or it was just because of her quick thoughts running through her mind. Either way, a walk might help. Jesse got to her feet and brushed herself off. She quietly sidestepped to avoid stepping on any of her two friends' limbs, and began to climb the hill that rose above her.

She paused her climb to take a look at the valley now beneath her. It was littered with hues of pink, purple, and yellow from the flowers that swathed the ground. Jesse continued to walk up the slope.

When she had picked the bush lined portal, it had landed the group here. The world was actually quite pleasant - perhaps because of the so far lack of danger - but it was certainly not home. They had bedded down in a small dip within the valley once night quickly fell, sheltered from any mobs that may spawn. They had decided on searching for the portal that would bring them back to the portal hallway in the morning.

Jesse cleared the slope of the hill with a start as she instantly noticed a pool of light radiating from a torch. It illuminated a figure leaning against a boulder. It was none other than Lukas.

"Oh, Lukas, hey!" Jesse said, her surprise vanishing. "I forgot that you were on watch."

"Hey, Jesse. I wasn't expecting you to be up so late. Is everything all right?" he said, shutting the book he was writing in and pocketing it. The torch's light that was planted by his side was jumping to and fro, causing his features to be accentuated. His already chiseled jawline looked even sharper in the shadows, while his blond hair was pushed back by a pair of black and grey goggles.

"Nothing's wrong - I just couldn't sleep." She shrugged. "I'd figured I'd walk around a bit and get some fresh air. Mind if I keep you company?"

She watched as Lukas' face lit up ever so slightly, the corners of his blue eyes crinkling. A somersault flipped in Jesse's stomach.

She blamed it on the heady flowery scent present in the atmosphere - it must have been making her queasy.

Lukas nodded and patted the grass beside him. "Go right ahead."

A moment of silence passed as Jesse sat beside Lukas, to his left, and pressed her back against the smooth rock. The brown-haired female inhaled slowly, savoring the cool, perfumed air entering her lungs. She could not help but also notice the faint scent of oak and fresh paper emanating from Lukas, due to their closeness - he was about a foot away.

"This view is beautiful. Kinda looks like a painting," she said. She could feel Lukas turn his gaze to her, then back to the horizon. The sky was velvet black, coated with stars that shone like diamonds. The full moon shone down on the valley, below the hill that the pair was atop of, granting the flowers a ghostlike quality.

"Mhm. So, I haven't asked you in a while - how are you doing?" Lukas said. Jesse opened her mouth to respond, but he interrupted. "I mean, like, really doing. Not just a, 'I'm fine'."

Jesse rubbed the back of her neck and laughed as she looked over to her friend. "You know me. Well . . ." she trailed off, thinking. A cricket peacefully filled in the silence with its chirps. She pulled her knees up to her chest and watched the flames from the torch flicker back and forth. "I miss them a lot. Axel and Olivia, I mean. I really just want to get home to them. And Beacontown in general, I suppose."

Lukas said, "Yeah, that makes sense. But with you leading us, I'm sure we'll be back before you know it." An unspoken thought hung between them: Jesse missed Rueben, too.

"Plus, we've had some sweet adventures. Overall, I'd say it's been pretty fun," he added.

"True! Though Sky City was a bit of a mess . . ." Jesse said and watched Lukas wince as he pressed a hand to his abdomen. He must have been remembering his fight with Aiden. "I forgot to ask, how have you been feeling after that fight?" Jesse asked.

"I've gotten a lot better since that. The only thing left of Aiden on me is this." Lukas reached up to point to small, red scar that ran across his jawline, close to his chin. Jesse felt her fingers twitch with an urge to brush them along his chin, so she could feel his pale skin. Instead, she clasped her arms around her shins tighter while she responded.

"I'm really glad to hear that," Jesse said. She rested her chin on top of her knees and lifted her brown orbs to the sky above, then glanced back to the male.

"So how are you doing, Lukas? Injuries aside," she said. The stars reflected in Lukas' blue eyes, giving them the resemblance of foamy waves crashing in the ocean. God, those ocean eyes of his were gorgeous. This was not the first time she had taken notice of them - no, far from it - it was just that any time she was near to him, she found herself appreciating his features more and more as time passed.

"I miss people too. The Ocelots - Gill, Aiden, Maya." He hurried on to explain. "I don't miss them right now, of course. But what I mean is that I miss who they used to be. Before the . . . Blazerods happened and all of that mess." He waved his hands around to emphasize his point, then reached up to run a hand through his blond hair.

Jesse frowned. "I'm sorry it turned out like that. Friends drifting away is never fun."

"Not that I'm ungrateful for you and Petra, though. I'm happy where I'm at now. What would I do about the Witherstorm and an all powerful chicken without you guys?" Lukas flashed a grin, white teeth glinting. Jesse snorted in laughter and elbowed his side in response. "You'd be a goner."

The pair continued to talk about other, casual things for several moments more, star gazing all the while. Jesse had stretched her legs out in front of her, while Lukas crossed his legs beneath him. Both were comfortable on the soft grass - so much, that during a lull in the conversation Jesse found her eyelids fluttering down.

* * *

A streak of white shot across the dark sky. Lukas opened his mouth to alert Jesse of it, but stopped when he felt a warm weight settle against his left shoulder. The young man looked to the side to see her resting her head against his shoulder, her neck bent to mold against him. Her brown hair fell like a waterfall across her back and down his arm. Jesse had fallen asleep on him.

A warm, fluttery feeling settled in Lukas' stomach as a light pink dusted his cheeks. He was not complaining at all of the new position, but she might have a sore neck the next morning with the angle that it was crooked at. In fact, instinct even called him to wrap his arm around Jesse's shoulder and to pull her close, so she was secure against his chest - but he urged that fantasy to drift out of his thoughts. However, it did not leave, so he simply ignored it.

A warm smile curved on Lukas' lips as he watched her. Hopefully his company was not that boring. She must have been exhausted. He would let her sleep - she needed the rest.

Careful to not move his left side in order to not disturb Jesse, Lukas pulled out his journal and began to write. Occassionally he would look up to check for danger in the valley, and to also steal a glance at Jesse, who remained still the rest of the night. The sound of soft, steady breathing and the scratching of a quill filled the atmosphere until dawn broke.


	2. Chapter 2

Well, this certainly was _not_ their world.

They were in a winter world. The land stretched on as far as they could see, and featured majestic ice formations sprouting up at random places and, in the distance, an evergreen forest. Beyond the forest there appeared to be a vast expanse of ice lakes. Everything was covered with a thick layer of snow, which glimmered like thousands of diamonds beneath the weak sunlight; the sun was obscured by grey clouds in the sky above.

A fog of steam billowed from Jesse's lips as she sighed in disappointment. The ice-lined portal was yet another failure. She looked down at her brown and red armor, feeling a touch of surprise. While the cold winds burned against her tanned face, the rest of her body seemed unaffected - warm, even. Perhaps Ellegard had installed some sort of insulation into the suit. The thought of the engineer made Jesse wince as she turned her gaze to the others in her group.

Petra groaned loudly and threw her arms in the air as she realized where they were - or, rather, where they were not. The young woman's thin lips curved into a frown as she took in her surroundings.

Lukas visibly began to shiver, his jaw clenching tightly as he wrapped his arms around his torso. He clutched at the edges of his black and grey jacket, trying to tug it closer together to shield his body from the cold.

Ivor, whose long hair was stark black against the white backdrop, did a quick scan of the land before nodding once. He placed his hands on his hips, his beady, black eyes taking on a spark that had not been there before as he bent down.

Jesse pointed to the trees, which were not too far away, and said, "All right, we know the drill. Looks like the sun will go down soon, so I think we should head to those trees over there for shelter and firewood before it goes dark. When it's morning, we can search fo-"

She was interrupted by a loud, "Ow!" from Petra. The auburn-haired female shot daggers torwards Ivor as she fumed. Snow was splattered across the back of her blue helmet - which left Jesse assuming that the older man had thrown a snowball at her.

"What, you can handle hordes of monsters, but can't deal with one snowball?" Ivor said, a smirk finding its way to his pale features. A wide grin split onto Jesse's face as she watched him quickly scoop more snow off of the ground and throw it at Petra before she could spit out more complaints. This time, however, Petra leaped out of the way, and the snowball landed squarely on Jesse's stomach. She grunted, and a playful gleam entered her brown gaze.

"Oh, you're on now. C'mon, Petra, let's get him!" She laughed and crouched down to pack snow together, the touch immediately chilling her palms. Behind Jesse Petra was grumbling, which the brunette ignored as she straightened and launched the snowball torwards Ivor. It hit its mark, and before they knew it, a full-blown snowball fight was in swing. Lukas had been dragged into the fray, on Ivor's side, due to Jesse 'accidentally' sending a projectile his way.

Laughter and shouts rung in the frigid air, cheeks were rosy, and the crunching of snow could be heard as their fingers slowly numbed. Even though the thought remained unspoken, each enjoyed the childlike actions. It reminded each of simpler times, and distracted them of the fact that they were desperately seeking home, only to fail time and time again.

* * *

Where in the _world_ did Lukas go?

Surrounding Jesse were evergreens, snow, and yet more snow. She squinted at the shades of brown, green, and white, trying to spot her friend. Earlier the group of four had found a location where they could settle down. It was at the edge of the forest and near the expanse of ice lakes. She and Lukas had gone in search for firewood so they could all keep warm throughout the night. Yet, for some reason or the other, he had disappeared from her sight.

"Lukas? Where'd you go?" Jesse asked. Her voice echoed and seemed to be thrown every which way - almost like light refracting off of a mirror. The tree branches appeared to be the cause of this; they were heavily ladened with pure ivory, creating a canopy of pine needles overhead.

"I have a surprise!" Lukas said. The only problem, was that his exclamation seemed to come from three points at once. Jesse halted in her tracks, thinking that he was just ahead. A small smile lit her features as she began to walk backwards, snow crunching at each step. "Oh no. That tone sounds like you're lurking in wait, just to launch a surprise snowball attack on me. And it's too late to do that now - we need to get that wood."

"Now, what makes you think I would ever do something like that?" Lukas asked, a chuckle rising in his words. The answer was delivered surprisingly close to Jesse. So near, that she startled and spun around.

The shorter female found herself standing just in front of Lukas; she had to tilt her head up so she could look at him. Jesse's breath hitched at their nearness, but she did not step back - it felt like her feet were glued to the snowy ground. Then again, Lukas did not move back either. Her heartbeat notably skyrocketed at these details, thudding so loudly that she could practically feel her pulse in her ears.

"God, why'd you sneak up on me like that?" Jesse asked, arching an eyebrow in question. Lukas' blue gaze locked onto her brown eyes, causing her to feel oddly self-conscious. Yet she felt unable to look away, just as her feet remained locked in place.

At this proximity, the brunette could observe details about Lukas that she had not noticed before: like the subtle movements of his chapped, full lips as they slowly twitched into a soft smile, the faint wrinkles edging the corner of his eyes and mouth -- remnants of his many past smiles -- and, yet again, the brightness of his ocean eyes. Not to mention the adorable tousle of his blond hair, which was dusted white with snow and adorned by his pair of goggles.

"I just wanted to give you . . ." he said softly, "this." Lukas pulled a bright, scarlet flower with a black center out of his pocket. It looked like a poppy.

"Where . . . ?" Jesse breathed, her gaze flickering to the beautiful plant. "The flower world," he answered simply. He reached up to tuck it into her brown hair and behind her ear.

Jesse shivered as his cold fingertips brushed against her ear. Her lips parted so she could speak, but the words caught in her throat as she became acutely aware of Lukas' hand stopping its previous movement and moving to cup her cheek. Butterflies erupted in Jesse's stomach as she watched his face tilt to the side and lean forward. Her eyelids fluttered shut on instinct.

Then Lukas kissed her.

Something shot through Jesse's veins at the sweet contact. Happiness? Europhia? Ecstasy? She did not know, but it caused her heart to race even faster than before, sending a tingling sensation through her whole body.

The unmoving kiss from the young man was tentative, almost shy. Her hands found their way to his back as he stepped closer, his other hand moving to the small of her back as he closed the distance between them. The short kiss was broken by Lukas, who pulled away slightly. It was most likely an attempt to gauge Jesse's response to his actions, and she replied silently after a moment of hesitation. Not opening her eyes, she tilted her head to the side, and their lips met again. The kiss deepened, and the pair parted after a moment had passed.

Silence filled the darkening air, only broken by their soft exhales. Jesse tightened her grip around Lukas' waist so that they were hugging. He returned the embrace in a similar affect, arms wrapping around her upper torso.

"I was going to say thank you, but . . . this works too," Jesse said. A smile curved onto her lips as she rested her head against his chest, able to feel the cloth of his orange shirt and the faint thump- thump of his heartbeat. She sensed him resting his chin on top of her shoulder. Her eyes remained shut as she inhaled, breathing in his soothing scent of oak.

Lukas chuckled, the noise rumbling past her ear. A shudder skittered down her spine, though not because of the cold temperatures. "I should be the one thanking you. I'm not quite so cold now," he said.

Jesse giggled, not yet stepping out of their embrace. She wanted to remain in his arms as long as possible. For even if her multiple emotions pumping through her heart were too chaotic to sort through at the moment, she knew of one thing.

If Lukas remained with her, then they all would get through this and back home, where they belonged.

Together.


End file.
